Development of a Multipurpose Agricultural Robot

Abstract

More than 60% of the population in Africa depends on agriculture as the main source of livelihood and the agricultural sector has continued to be critical in supporting the economies of the continent. Although it is important, smallholder farmers continue to experience certain challenges since they include shortage of labor, poor use of agricultural resources, and exposure to modern mechanization. These challenges are also compounded by the effects of climate change and the growing migration of youthful manpower to cities. This paper presents the design of an all-purpose farming robot to support the interests of the smallholder farmers in Africa. The suggested design will combine three fundamental agricultural functions into one cheap robotic platform: precision grass trimming with brushless DC motors, automated seed dispensing with servo mechanisms, and intelligent irrigation control with real-time soil moisture detection. The robot is controlled by a four-wheel-drive base with high-torque motors, which will enable it to handle the rough and uneven land that is characteristic of African farmlands. ESP32 microcontroller is used as the control station of a system that will be connected to the Blynk IOT platform to control and monitor wirelessly. Temperature and humidity are measured with the DHT11 sensors, and the water content of the soil is measured with capacitive moisture sensors. An inbuilt camera module will enable farmers to monitor the state of the field remotely with a smart phone interface. Economic analysis indicates that the proposed system will possibly reduce the operational costs by about 40-60 percent as compared to buying and servicing of individual agricultural machines to do each job. Future developments can incorporate the use of solar energy to be sustainable, artificial intelligence to allow autonomous capability, and high-end sensors to be used to control precision agriculture. In general, this study will offer a practical and scalable solution to modernizing small-scale agriculture in developing world setting through offering an inexpensive robotic system that is uniquely tailored to an African farming setting.